Jim Leary of the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures noted, “The seldom heard, yet culturally rich songs of the Upper Midwest's indigenous and immigrant rural and working class peoples make surprising, significant contributions to the American experience." Leary received a Grammy nomination for Folksongs of Another America, which draws on field recordings found in the Mills Music Library.

Over 25 cultural traditions of Wisconsin and the Upper Midwest are captured on field recordings, home recordings and the earliest commercial recordings. Dating from 1900 to the 1980s, these 78rpm discs, DATs, cassettes, and reels are fragile, deteriorating, or require obsolete and specialized equipment for playback.

“We’re thrilled the NEH recognized the importance of this fabulous and historic collection,” said Jeanette Casey, Head of Mills Music Library. “These recordings are like books nobody can read, and now we can open them up to the world.”

“NEH provides support for projects across America that preserve our heritage, promote scholarly discoveries, and make the best of America’s humanities ideas available to all Americans,” said NEH Chairman William D. Adams. “We are proud to announce this latest group of grantees who, through their projects and research, will bring valuable lessons of history and culture to Americans.”

The National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 created the National Endowment for the Humanities as an independent federal agency, the first grand public investment in American culture. The law identified the need for a national cultural agency that would preserve America’s rich history and cultural heritage, and encourage and support scholarship and innovation in history, archaeology, philosophy, literature, and other humanities disciplines.